This invention pertains to a protective garment, which is intended to be worn by a wearer, such as a firefighter, an emergency worker, a police officer, or a military person, who is authorized to pass through a security perimeter. This invention contemplates that the protective garment comprises a card, which is disposed in a pocket defining a window and which displays or records data readable through the window and unique to the authorized wearer.
Commonly, a firefighter carries an identifying card, which may display bar code data identifying the firefighter and which may display a photograph of the firefighter. As exemplified in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,596,652 and 6,029,889, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference, it is known for said data to be electronically scanned and to be then used to track firefighters arriving at a firefighting site, entering the firefighting site, and leaving the firefighting site.
As a matter of related interest, U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,741 discloses, on a firefighter""s garment, a label bearing warnings, washing information, or other information. As stitched in place, the label is covered by a transparent, protective layer of a heat resistant, abrasion resistant, substantially waterproof material, which is stitched in place, all the way around the label. The material may be a biaxially oriented, copolymer film, such as KAPTON film manufactured by E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company of Wilmington, Delaware.
Historically, perimeter security has been needed at military bases and other military sites. Terrorist activities on Sep. 11, 2001, in the United States and other incidents have highlighted that perimeter security may be also needed at firefighting sites and other sites, particularly where numerous firefighters, emergency workers, and police officers are gathered, many of whom may not be personally acquainted with one another.
This invention provides a protective garment, which is intended to be only worn by a wearer who is authorized to pass through a security perimeter. The protective garment comprises a pocket, which defines a window, and an external flap, which is movable between a position wherein the flap covers the window and positions wherein the flap does not cover the window. Preferably, the protective garment further comprises means, such as a hook-and-loop fastener, for attaching the flap detachably in the position wherein the flap covers the window.
The window becomes visible from outside the protective garment, when the flap has been moved to one of the positions wherein the flap does not cover the window, without further manipulation of the protective garment.
This invention contemplates that the protective garment further comprises a card, which is disposed in the pocket. The card displays or records data, which are readable through the window by a human, by an electronic reader, or by both, and which are unique to the authorized wearer of the protective garment. The data may comprise symbolic date, such as bar code data, which identifies the authorized wearer, and a photograph of the authorized wearer of the protective garment.
As read by an electronic reader, the data may be used for perimeter security, by being compared to a database of authorized wearers, via a computer receiving the data from the electronic reader. Additionally, the same data may be used for any similar or dissimilar purpose disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,596,652 and No. 6,029,889, supra. When the flap covers the window, the flap protects the data against becoming unreadable because of foreign matter, such as soot, or because of surface abrasion.